Atiku’s Fuel Subsidy Plan Is Like APC’s Muslim-Muslim Ticket, Says Fayemi

Former Ekiti State Governor and ex-Minister of Solid Minerals Kayode Fayemi has likened the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, fuel subsidy proposal to the All Progressives Congress (APC) Muslim-Muslim ticket strategy in the 2023 election, describing it as a political ploy.

Fayemi stated this during an interview on Arise Television’s Prime Time on Monday while commenting on the renewed debate over fuel subsidy and Atiku’s position on the policy.

The former governor said Atiku’s proposal was primarily designed to appeal to Nigerians struggling with the economic consequences of petrol subsidy removal rather than being based on an economic framework.

“My take on that is that Atiku’s proposal of subsidy is politically equivalent to our own Muslim-Muslim ticket in 2023. It’s a political strategy. It’s not an economic construct,” Fayemi said.

Despite criticising Atiku’s proposal, Fayemi reiterated his support for the removal of fuel subsidy, saying he had consistently advocated the policy for several years.

He recalled that he pushed for subsidy removal during his time as chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum, where state governors engaged the Federal Government on the issue.

“I was and I remain an advocate of fuel subsidy removal. As chairman of the governors’ forum, I spent four years in this battle,” he said.

Fayemi, however, acknowledged that the policy had imposed significant hardship on vulnerable Nigerians, arguing that this was the area Atiku was seeking to exploit politically.

“But understandably, it’s a political strategy that will sell with those who are hard done by the impact of fuel subsidy removal,” he said.

Fayemi also said President Bola Tinubu inherited substantial work on subsidy removal from the previous administration, although he faulted the manner in which the policy was eventually implemented.

“What President Tinubu inherited, in fairness to him, was the work that had already been completed by that administration. The only challenge I had with it was the way it was done,” Fayemi said.

According to the former governor, the Nigerian Governors’ Forum had previously collaborated with the federal government and the World Bank to develop a safety-net programme that would protect the most vulnerable Nigerians from the effects of subsidy removal.

“However, as I have also consistently said, because at the Nigerian Governors Forum, we actually had a committee work with the federal government and the World Bank, by the way, to develop a safety net strategy that would address what would happen to the most vulnerable segment of our population,” he said.

Fayemi said the continued hardship faced by vulnerable Nigerians was what made Atiku’s subsidy proposal politically attractive.

“I believe that’s what Vice President Atiku is taking advantage of. The vulnerable segment of the population is still hard done by,” he said.

He explained that many Nigerians affected by the rising cost of living were less interested in the technical arguments surrounding subsidy policy and more concerned about their ability to meet their daily needs.

“They just want to live reasonably well, eke out a living, have one or two meals a day, be able to send their kids to school, not be taken in by sickness or anything that might create further problems for them,” Fayemi said.

He further linked poverty and inequality to the security challenges facing the country, saying they were “also at the root of the insurgency and the banditry that we’re dealing with.”

Fayemi maintained that Atiku’s position should therefore be viewed within the context of the 2027 political contest.

He compared it with the APC’s decision to field a Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket in 2023, arguing that both positions were political strategies designed to appeal to particular sections of the electorate.

According to Fayemi, Atiku is seeking to capitalise on public dissatisfaction with the consequences of fuel subsidy removal by promising a policy position that could resonate with Nigerians facing economic hardship.